Frontline agencies briefed on treaty ahead of ‘provisional application’ from April 10

Key frontline agencies including the Royal Gibraltar Police, Customs and the Borders and Coastguard Agency have been briefed on detailed aspects of the UK/EU treaty for Gibraltar ahead of its implementation in coming months.

The text of the treaty is still undergoing the final stages of a legal review and has yet to be ratified by the UK and EU parliaments.

But on the ground, preparatory work is intensifying, with all sides keen to ensure the necessary infrastructure and arrangements are in place, even if on a temporary basis, ahead of the April 10 deadline for EU-wide implementation of the Entry/Exit System [EES], the EU’s new automated border control system.

The treaty includes provisions that will ensure Gibraltar residents are not subject to strict EES controls including biometric scans and restrictions on how long non-EU nationals can be within the Schengen zone.

Without those provisions, the fear is the EES requirements could severely disrupt frontier fluidity and impact negatively on communities either side of the border.

While the legal processes toward ratification are still ongoing, all sides are clear they want to avoid that potential impact at the border when April 10 arrives.

“I am very excited that we are cautiously starting to prepare for implementation of a seminal treaty that will bring huge opportunities for our people and our businesses,” said Chief Minister Fabian Picardo.

“I look forward to final signature of the text, debate in the Gibraltar Parliament and ratification by the UK Government and the EU institutions.”

“Given then impending likelihood of EES being fully applicable from 10th April, we are working to avoid that by seeking to be ready for provisional application by then.”

The reference to “provisional application” is significant because this is a method well established in international treaty practice to bring agreements into effect ahead of entry into force.

It enables countries to apply treaty commitments on a provisional basis prior to entry into force and while they complete the necessary procedures and relevant international treaty formalities to finalise the ratification process.

As part of the briefings to frontline stakeholders, which also included the Department of Immigration and Home Affairs and the Brexit Transition Advisory Group, the Government provided “concrete assurances” to officers at Customs and the Borders and Coastguard Agency that there will be no job losses or changes to their job descriptions arising from the treaty or its implementation.

“I want to reassure our HM Customs and BCA Officers that this treaty safeguards their jobs, roles and responsibilities,” Mr Picardo said.

“There will be no job losses in any area of the Public Service as a result of this agreement.”

“The people of Gibraltar can be confident that this treaty secures a safe and prosperous future for our community, and fully protects our red lines of sovereignty, jurisdiction and control.”

Recent visits by delegations of Spanish authorities have focused on the practical implementation of necessary infrastructure and technology, much of it focused on a new joint immigration facility at the airport, commonly referred to as the ‘Schengen shack’.

While the full infrastructure may not be fully complete by the target implementation date of April 10, the Government said it was exploring options for provisional infrastructure to be put in place by that time.

This would allow the core elements of the treaty to come into force as planned, with the more comprehensive facilities finalised in the following months.

The Government said it remained committed to “a smooth and timely implementation” of the new treaty for the benefit of all residents and visitors.

“The Government expects that the full text of the treaty will be published in a matter of weeks,” said Attorney General Michael Llamas.

“There is a lot of work that needs to be done, but we have set up dedicated working groups to meet weekly and drive the implementation forward.”

“Our goal is to have the provisional infrastructure in place by 10th April, and then complete the full joint facilities in the months after that.”

Dr Joseph Garcia, the Deputy Chief Minister, said the planned infrastructure were vital to ensure border fluidity.

“This is the point where the treaty process moves from planning into delivery, and practical and operational preparations are now advancing alongside the finalisation of the legal text,” he said.

“The development of the second line checks area at the airport and the supporting technology is essential to ensure smooth and efficient cross-border movement.”